Five OU Gymnasts Named to U.S. National Team

Aug. 19, 2011

SAINT PAUL, Minn. - The 2011 U.S. Men's National Team was named Friday and five University of Oklahoma gymnasts were awarded spots on Team USA. The National Team announcement was given after a dominant performance at the 2011 Visa Championships, with five former or current Sooners placing in the top seven.   

The Visa Championships, USA Gymnastics' national championship, features the country's best gymnasts vying for national titles and spots on the U.S. National Team in men's, women's and rhythmic gymnastics.

OU letterwinners Jonathan Horton, Chris Brooks and Steven Legendre join juniors Jake Dalton and Alex Naddour on the U.S. squad, marking the second straight year that the five Sooners have all made the National Team. The decision of which six gymnasts will represent the United States at the 2011 World Championship will be announced Saturday.   

"I'm really proud of the guys," said head coach Mark Williams. "They put on a tremendous amount of energy and effort and were fantastic in their events. Having five guys place in the top seven is just unbelievable. I think we have an amazing group of young men that do some tremendous things. And I look forward to taking some of them to the World Championships this fall."   

Horton, winner of the 2009 and 2010 Visa Championships, took second place with a two-day all-around score of 181.05. Danell Leyva won the event with a 183.800. 

Brooks boasted a 178.600, including the event's second-best high bar total (31.300), to take fourth.    

Junior Dalton had the highest floor (32.450) and vault (33.650) totals of the event and finished in fifth with a 177.800.   

Recent OU graduate and Nissen-Emery Award winner Legendre (177.600) placed in sixth with junior Naddour (175.850) in seventh. Naddour claimed the highest pommel horse total with a 31.100 and Legendre had the second-highest totals for both vault (32.900) and floor (32.000).

Oklahoma had 10 total gymnasts in the Visa Championships with eight individuals compete at the senior level and two in the junior division.   

The Senior National Team of 15 gymnasts was determined at the 2011 Visa Championships in Saint Paul, Minn., by the top six all around athletes, the top four athletes determined by the National Team points program (of those not in the top six all around results), one athlete selected by the National Team Coordinator and four athletes selected by the Men's Program Committee.  

Six gymnasts from the U.S. National Team will then be selected to represent the United States at the 2011 World Championships in Tokyo, Japan, in October. With the 2012 Olympic Games approaching, this year's World Championship squad will compete to secure a spot in London next summer.  

The Men's World Team will be selected by a committee on Saturday morning.   

NBC (Cox Channel 4, 704 HD in Oklahoma City) will air a taped recap show of the men's finals on Aug. 21 at 1:30 p.m. CT.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

Five OU Gymnasts Named to U.S. National Team

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